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SA still at level 1 lockdown, but greater vaccine efforts needed

This evening, President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the nation regarding COVID-19 in South Africa, with the omicron variant of the virus being the key focus. To that end the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) met and decided to keep the country at adjusted alert level 1 lockdown.

This as the South African medical community assessing the impact of this variant, are yet to know how infectious it is, the severity of its symptoms and how effective the vaccines being administered locally are against it.

As such, the level of lockdown may change should the scenario around the omicron variant of the virus intensify. The current restrictions around the lockdown will remain the same, but in a week’s time, may be adjusted.

We have seen for example, that the infection rate climbing from 2.5 percent to 9 percent in the space of a week, with a fourth wave now anticipated in early December, along with the possibility of more variants presenting in the coming weeks.

The president also reiterated the importance of vaccination, with more needing to be done on that front, and the rollout of vaccines in South Africa still viewed as the most effective measure than can be taken to fighting the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

Added to this, there are discussions underway to make vaccinations mandatory in certain scenarios, such as public indoor gatherings and those going to work in a building.

At this stage there is no indication of whether a measure would be signed into law, but as we continue to fight waves of infection, it is looking increasingly likely.

Either way, it looks like government’s major priority at the moment, is getting the population of the country vaccinated. Whether that can indeed be achieved given the mixed results to date, remains to be seen.

[Image – CC BY-ND 2.0 GovernmentZA on Flickr]

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